Although Schremp didn't receive much playing time at the beginning of the season, he has been a consistent piece of the Islanders lineup in the second half.

"It's obvious that some players just need to be given the opportunity to play in the NHL; you don't have to look further than Rob Schremp and Matt Moulson," Gordon said.

"Rob is a skilled player that has to commit himself to getting stronger and improve his conditioning in the off-season. As much as he's done offensively, he's also gotten better on defense."

"That's been the biggest knock on his game...it's been a slow process , but he's committed to it. He has some ability [offensively] though, that a lot of players on this team, on any NHL team, don't have."

***

Although Trent Hunter (upper body) practiced with the team for the first time today, he only recently began taking shots, so is still a fair distance from returning.